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SERMON
WHERE HE LEADS ME I WILL FOLLOW
What man is there among us who would not want to follow Jesus? The most discouraging thing is, whose word shall we take? One says, this, another says that, and so many churches all around us, we throw up our hands and say, which way to the Kingdom? They all say this way. No one but God could straighten out a mess of that kind. What shall we do about it? Only one thing to do. Go to his word that is given through the prophets and apostles, and not discount any of it. My Lord said, “Not one jot or one tittle should pass from the law. I think we would do well if we go to Him in some closet and tell Him what we are going to do, and then get out and do it.
The making of promises is 0K but keeping them is the work of an honest man. There are a great many people in the church who hesitate at some of the counsel of God, and sort of stall at the law of the celestial kingdom. But Jesus said, “I do always those things that please Him.” He agreed to come and save the world and the sacrifice was so great that He asked the Father, ‘‘If it is possible, let this cup pass from me.” But it had already been planned and He was submissive to His agreement. Our text, Where He leads me I will follow, is our agree.
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ment, and when He shared it with His disciples and even fed the multitude and would not send them away hungry. Thus giving us the desires of His heart and willingness to give to the needy gives us the challenge to keep His word, which tells us to share with our brother. Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself is a requirement now that stares us in the face, and will hinder us from staying in Zion if we brush it aside. Where He leads me I will follow. He led that way and did everything that was required of Him, even to the shedding of his blood, He taught that rich young man what he should do after the commandments of the law had been observed or kept.
Sometimes we might think we have kept the commandments, perhaps we have kept many of them. But our love and devotion are put to the test when it comes to the two commandments to which lie said all the rest were attached. The law of Moses was as a schoolmaster or to bring them to Christ. Likewise the principles of Faith, Repentance and Baptism and Laying on of Hands were given by our Lord, that we may enter the church. But after those principles come our work of perfecting our lives, We add to our faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, Godliness, brotherly kindness, and charity, which makes our lives fruitful in the knowledge of God. Then when we know something about Him we love God with all our hearts, might, mind, and strength, then we are prepared to love our neighbor as ourselves. It takes a lot of courage to do all that. The people of the church lack courage. Courage to comply with the law of equality. Which is the law of the celestial kingdom. Maybe we think too much of our money, our goods, our houses or our land to be willing to even give regular to a fund that would care for any one of our group that would get sick or meet with some accident and need hospital care or nurse care. This law of equality
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which is the law of the celestial kingdom is the polishing of our faith. It’s the quality of the luster of the lively stones in the superstructure of the church. It makes them shine until their beauty will reach to the highest Heaven, and call down the blessings of God and He will send Jesus Christ with all the Saints and all the angels to meet the church in Zion. For out of Zion the perfection of beauty God hath shined.
This law of equality which is the law of the celestial kingdom is the only way that Zion can be redeemed. Read Section 102d-2 in the Doctrine and Covenants. Now what do you say? Just sit down and write me a letter if you appreciate that sermon.
BLESSED ASSURANCE
What a joy to know a thing is true and will bring us happiness all our lives. What comfort and satisfaction to arrive home from a journey, what joy to meet our loved ones that we haven’t seen for years. I’ve tried to picture in my mind the joy of that great Reunion when the Lord my God shall come and we meet the dear ones who have gone on before. Wouldn’t you like to be there? Of course you would. Everyone would like to see that time. Do you think that is an idle dream? No that’s the word of God settled forever and though you may not know or have had the knowledge revealed to you. That knowledge has been revealed to many and they have testified to it and the most beautiful thing in this whole world is the promise of Jesus Christ that we can know, and shall know. What shall we do about that? If we fold our hands and say our work is done, or say Jesus done the work we would be classed among the lazy and disobedient. We must get up in the morning to see the sunrise. It’s 0K to rest,
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but we rest after the work is done. Consider the testimony of Job. I know that my Redeemer lives and in the latter day He shall stand on the earth, and do you know he wanted that testimony chiseled in the Rock for ever. But we have a sure promise from Jesus Christ that we may have a personal testimony to each one who will obey and do His commandments. Now wouldn’t that be something? That’s what I mean when I say Blessed Assurance.
Our hopes rise with Faith and we press forward in that high calling. Every step nearer, every mile surer. That what He has done for others He can do for me, and if we walk into the Valley of Death we will not be afraid.
He leadeth me into green pastures and beside the still waters and that guiding hand assures me. Its a Blessed Assurance and we fear no evil. What a peace comes to our souls. For lie is our leader. He said “Fear not little flock it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom.” So when we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with each other. Our sins are forgiven and great joy fills our hearts and we can dwell in the House of the Lord forever.
Blessed Assurance Jesus will save. 0 what a foretaste of Heaven to enjoy the gifts and as Paul said in I Cor. 13 it was only knowledge in part, or seeing through a dark glass. Can you imagine the glory of the celestial world? No wonder Paul said he saw things it was not lawful to tell. Press on: press nobly on. The goal is near. The toils of the road will be nothing when we get to the end of the way. Brighten your corner where you are. Blessed Assurance tells us, go on.
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A MOST WONDERFUL VISION GIVEN ME AT
SPRINGFIELD, SOUTH DAKOTA
When I was in the South Dakota Mission some years ago, I was preaching in a large school house, south of Springfield about seven miles. I had preached several weeks every night and three times on Sunday.
And on Saturday night I said, “three meetings tomorrow, folks. I want you all to come.’’ After I had made that announcement, 1 began to think, ‘‘What will I preach about? I’ve been preaching three weeks and it seemed like everything was taken away from me. I worried. 1 began to pray. I went to bed, I prayed. Couldn’t go to sleep. Prayed all night. Didn’t sleep a wink.”
Just at dawn I had a vision, an open vision. I saw the walls of my room become transparent and looked upon the world and it was changed. Everything was beautiful, more beautiful than anything I had ever seen. I said, “0, how beautiful’’. An audible voice spoke to me and said, “This is the condition of the earth in the millennium, and I looked into the heavens and I saw in great figures of gold 2005,’’ I said if this is the condition of the world in the millennium, the millennium will be ushered in as early as 2,005.” When I said that the figures changed to 1969, and I said, ‘‘If this is the condition of the earth in the millennium, the millennium will be ushered in as early as 1969, the figures disappeared and I was not told if it was right and to my utter astonishment, the trees, the grass. the flowers, and all vegetation began to sing in my language, Glory to God in the Highest, Peace has come to the earth”. And I looked in the distance, I saw the temple in Zion, and the Saints were coming in on the beautiful highways, and were entering the temple. I saw the Lord Jesus standing
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by the entrance to the temple, blessing the people as they entered. That voice spake again and said, “This is the condition of the earth in the millennium and the saints are assembling to receive an endowment’’. The vision passed and my mind went immediately to the 35th chapter of Isaiah.
The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly and rejoice even with joy and singing, and the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it. And the excellency of Carmel and Sharon and they shall see the glory of the Lord and tile excellency of our God.
Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm the feeble knees. Say unto them who are fearful, be strong. Fear not your God will come with a vengeance. Even God with a recompense. He will come to save you, etc.
I didnt lack for material to preach those three sermons. The people were thrilled as I told them. Seven baptized.
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SERMON
Bring all your tithes into my storehouse and prove me if I will not open unto you the windows of Heaven, and pour you out a blessing that there will not be room to receive it.
There are two statements in Scripture that seem to be a little hard. One is that some might be burned and the other is some one might be damned. He that believeth not shall be damned, or he that is tithed shall not be burned. We want you to escape both. Jesus himself said, “Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God.” He also inspired David to write, “A fire shall devour before Him. Also the wicked shall be destroyed at the brightness of His coming. All these Scriptures teach us there will be destruction at His coming. We are looking for His corning. Jesus gave us a parable of ten virgins and they all slumbered and slept while the Bridegroom tarried: That’s the condition of the church now and unless we can awake and see our plight we will suffer great loss. So if we are not willing to bring all our tithes into his storehouse we may be blinded spiritually until we may not be ready to meet the Lord. Some have held back their offerings because they thought the money was not being used in the right way. The men whom we have sustained to hold the purse strings of the church and pay out the money will le held accountable before God for their stewardship. Our stewardship is to fill the treasury. Theirs is to spend the money in righteousness. When both fill their mission and we fully comply with the law then is when those windows can and will be opened and a blessing come down upon us that there will not be room to receive it. How could that be?
Read that 50th Psalm. Out of Zion the perfection of beauty God hath shined. There will come a time when the
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glory of God will rest upon the place until the nations of the world will come up to Zion and ask us to teach them of His ways. So don’t worry and think, it can’t be done. God could bring that about without your help, but He wants you to be among those who are willing to sacrifice like the father, when he saw the prodigal son a long way off, went to meet him and fell on his neck and kissed him. If we would exemplify that kind of love for all our brothers and sisters we would be a little nearer the celestial law and it would not he necessary for God to scatter us out of Zion or compel us to learn obedience by the things we suffer. Our eyes could be opened to see the way into his green pastures and we could get down on our knees and drink at a living fountain, and not walk in darkness, or drink the stagnant water of unbelief. The following experience will illustrate this point.
May God bless you,
Amen.
THE STORY OF THE ARMY WORMS
When I lived in northern Montana some years ago, I had a homestead of 320 acres of good land. I had improved it with a house and had a crop of 12 acres of flax, 20 acres of oats and 10 acres of wheat. I came home one day at noon for dinner and while eating lunch I looked out the kitchen door across the road to Mr. Alair’s wheat. He had 320 acres all in wheat, I saw a large black spot of ground. I said to my wife, ‘‘What’s that over on Alair’s wheat?’’ She said, ‘‘I don’t know. I’ve been watching it all morning and it’s getting larger.’’ I said, ‘‘I’m going over there and see.’’ I went, and of all the worms I had ever seen that was the limit. It looked to me like there was a carload. I came back and I said, “Sweetheart it’s about time we were getting down on our
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knees.’’ She said,
“What?’’ I said, ‘‘that’s army worms and they are coming straight toward our crop and taking that wheat smooth to the ground.” It was in June, the wheat was about six inches high. She said, “They will take our crop.’’ I said, ‘‘No they won’t. I’ve paid every cent of my tithing and the promise is ‘‘The destroyer will pass you by.” She said, “
“Do you think God would send those worms by?’’ I said, “sure will. Let’s pray right now and ask him to do it.’’ We agreed and right there we got down on our knees and I told the Lord all about it, and asked Him to send those worms by. He did. And those worms crawled right straight across my place for three weeks and took the crop on the other side. That Mr. Alair was a Presbyterian preacher who talked at the schoolhouse and had his Sundav School every Sunday. I had Sunday School and preached in my own house. He was up there to my place every day, and he would always say, ‘‘Case, are they eating on you yet?’’ I ‘d say. ‘No, the Lord sent those worms by.” He said, “You don’t think He could do that do you?’’ I said, “Certainly. Don’t you know about that promise? They will pass you by.’’ He said, ‘‘I didn’t think lie could do it for you.’’ I said, ‘‘Look at those worms they are in a hurry, they didn’t take a bite out of anything I had, garden or crop.’’
The law of the Lord is perfect. The testimony of the Lord is sure. Such things will happen in Zion, when we fulfill the celestial law and are united in that bond and holy union with each other and our Lord. Then we will possess the goodly land of Zion, and we may be the Zion of our God.
He taught this solemn way
He fixed these holy rites
He bade us all to obey
And keep this path of light.
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THE TRUE VINE
There are many vines and many kinds of vines, hut there is a vine called the true vine. It is of this one that I speak. The true vine from Heaven. Jesus Christ is that vine. I am the true vine. My Father is the husband- man and He represented the people of the church as the branches, I am the vine. Ye are the branches. In His great plan lie designed these branches to bear fruit. Those who did not bear fruit would be burned.
That’s a fine picture with which we can compare the people. No matter who they are we can make the comparison of people, churches, fraternal orders, or organizations of any kind, race or color. Every branch in Me that beareth not fruit He taketh it away. Or in my words, ‘‘It would be severed, cut off from the vine and they would be gathered up and burned.
What would it be for us to be (in the vine) (in Me) ? I would say it would be to accept the (laws of adoption) or the laws that govern our entrance into His church or His Kingdom. They are very simple, but powerful in their meaning. Repent ye and believe the Gospel. That is the start. That is preparation for entrance into the Kingdom. When we have believed and repented we then are ready to be received into His kingdom (His church) by baptism and the laying on of hands by the man who is called of God as was Aaron (by revelation from God) as of Num. 27, or Heb. 5.
Now His kingdom as lie said was not of this world (My Kingdom is not of this world). That is the appointments came from Heaven Luke 22 :29. Organizations of men, churches of men, or fraternal orders can not qualify when measured by Luke 22:29, or Num. 27 :15, or Heb. 5:4. That is where the test comes. That’s where they are weighed in the balance and found wanting. Void of auth
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ority from God. Gal. 1:12, I Cor. 12:28, Eph. 4:10-11, and John 16 and many others. Wherever this Gospel of the Kingdom is preached the signs will follow the believer. Read Mark 16:16. Go ye (the 11) into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, and he that believeth not shall be damned and these signs will follow those who believe. In My name they shall cast out devils. They shall speak with new tongues. They shall take up serpents, and if they drink any deadly thing it shall not hurt them. They shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover.
All this was the evidence or sign of God s recognition of their acceptance or seal of their adoption into His Kingdom. Now what would you do, would you reject this teaching? Would you say He could not do that I testify He does do that and more. Jesus said, These things shall ye do, and greater things shall ye do if ye believe in Me. It sure looks to me like we don’t have many believers in this time.
Come out of that wilderness of darkness into the light of God that will lead you to eternal day. Come out of those organizations of men and accept the Gospel at the hands of the man who is called of God as vas Aaron, and receive the seal of your adoption; Testimony from heaven and then you can say I know my Redeemer lives. And you will be looking for His coming with bright hope, and you can come forth in the first resurrection and attend the great reunion and live and reign with Christ as your king, for He will reign over all the earth and you can sit under your own vine and fig tree, and live in supreme happiness. Is that worthwhile? Are you willing to pay the price? It pays to serve Jesus. It pays every step of the way.
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THE TWO COVENANTS
As you will remember I have held out to you this Gospel of the Kingdom of God which has been enjoyed by the people in several periods of time. As in the days of Noah, Enoch, Moses and in the days when our Lord was here. ‘We have a clear statement of its existence in the days of Moses as of I Cor. 10. Moreover I would not have you ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud and all passed through the sea, and were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea, and did all drink of the same spiritual drink, and did all eat of the same spiritual meat. For they drank of that spiritual rock that followed them and that rock was Christ. They enjoyed tins blessed experience for a short period of time, but when they reached Sinai in Southern Arabia the Lord called Moses up on the mountain and they had made a covenant with Moses they would do as ( wanted them to do. Moses received the law of the Lord and God wrote it on the one side of the tablets of stone and the Ten Commandments, which were called the Law of Moses, on the other side. So when Moses came down off the mountain, the people were worshipping “the golden calf’’. Moses was wroth with them and slammed the tablets of stone on the ground and broke them, thus telling them that the covenant was broken. Moses went back up Oil the mountain and on this second trip the Lord told him what to write, and it was the Ten Commandments. Read Exo. 34:28. This Ten Commandment covenant was the covenant written by Moses on the tablets of stone which the Israelites accepted and lived under as the law of the land and was called the schoolmaster to lead them to Jesus Christ.
The promises from God for keeping or obeying this was, “Your life shall be prolonged in the land whither you go to possess it and the land shall flow with milk and
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honey.” Read Deut. 5:33 and 6. The Ten Commandments were the words of the Covenant Exo. 34:28. This was the schoolmaster to bring them to Christ and as Paul says, “When Christ is come we are no longer under the school master. When Jesus came and preached to them and in making reference to these Ten Commandments He said, “Ye have heard, Thou shalt not kill. (As you know this is one of the Ten Commandments.) But I say unto you that whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause is in danger of judgment and who shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of Hell fire.
Now I’m not saying that you will be thrown into the lake of fire. But I do say His word is true. The Gospel reaches the heart. He said also, “Thou shalt not commit adultery. But I say that whosoever looketh upon a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her in his heart.” You see God requires a service from the heart and if we can’t repay it, we will suffer loss. The promises for keeping the law of Moses were as I told you. First your life will be prolonged in the land of Canaan. Second, the land shall flow with milk and honey.
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